For the uninitiated, BOB is the Big Orange Bridge across the West Arm of Kootenay Lake.
Lakeside Park is
the park in Nelson. Being on the waterfront it's where the beach is, and given its size, it's the park in which they've been able to cram the most stuff.
Let's see, what all does this park have to offer?
I've already mentioned the beach and there's a boat launch at the north end of it. By the north entrance to the park is a concession where one can fill up on burgers and dogs or cool off with cokes or ice cream. Adjacent is a large children's playground and adjacent to that is a permanent labyrinth. Further south there's a totem pole modelled after a larger one on Vancouver Island. Nearby one will see a large covered picnic pavilion, complete with barbecues. Still further south are tennis courts and three bocci pits. Continuing south we encounter the home of the Nelson Rowing Club, then the streetcar shed which houses Trolley #23, a historic trolley, originally of the Nelson Transit System, which now runs up and down the waterfront through the park. The conductors/operators are able to keep up a running chatter as the trolley progresses, with interesting tidbits on each of the sights passing by.
As one continues south from the trolley shed the park becomes more open, with room for two baseball diamonds and two soccer fields. Centralized among the sports fields is an arboretum, divided into nine sections. Each section displays trees and other flora which would be found in particular climactic zones in forests of the Kootenays, from desert-like to inland rainforest. Just west of the arboretum is a fitness area with many pieces of apparatus one can employ to both test and improve one's physical fitness. This area is set along the Waterfront Walkway, a project created to observe Nelson's Centennial in 2007. The walkway extends both north and south past the park.
Scattered throughout the park are dozens of benches and picnic tables and dozens of trees planted in memory of those who have passed on. There is artwork to be found from one end of the park to the other, with more being added every year. The north end of the park, especially, has stands of mature trees, both coniferous and deciduous to provide welcome shade in the summer. Throughout the park can be found plaques dedicated to various individuals, groups and associations historically important to the community. Washrooms and drinking fountains are to be had at the ends and the centre of the park.
If this isn't quite enough to satisfy, the park is also home to the
Rose Garden Café, touted as one of the best, if not
the best café in town.